Over the years here at BCCHardware we've come very familiar with NZXT thanks to the numerous cases we've reviewed from them. Today we're going to take a look at a new product from NZXT, the HAVIK 140 CPU Cooler. This is the first CPU Cooler that NZXT has produced and it will be very interesting to see if they've got a product that can compete with the numerous other aftermarket coolers available.

The HAVIK 140 is a pretty standard tower heatpipe design but what really stands out are the dual 140mm fans which feature a very unique fan blade design. Due to the large size of the fans it's probably the first thing you'll notice, however thanks to this size you'll be able to push some serious airflow without having excessive fan noise.

Let's take a close look at the HAVIK 140 and see what it's all about.

First Impressions:

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Packaging

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Packaging

Even though packaging doesn't really matter that much in the grand scheme of things, I'm going to give NZXT top marks for producing a package that actually might make people want to buy it thanks to its nice appearance. In addition to the box actually looking modern, the packaging inside of it is even better and keeps everything nice and safe during shipping.

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Heatsink

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Heatsink Fins

The heatsink of the HAVIK 140 is a pretty standard tower heatpipe design. This heatsink features six 6mm heatpipes to help get the heat away from the CPU as quickly as possible. Overall the build quality is quite good and it feels nice and sturdy and won't get beat up if it encounters a bit of abuse.

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Top of Heatsink

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Bottom of Heatsink

Included with the HAVIK 140 are 2 140mm fans which feature a bit of a unique fan blade design. Quite a few fan manufacturers are using different blade designs to optimize airflow and noise levels and NZXT has done the same. Regardless of how the different design affects performance you've got to admit that this makes the fan look pretty mean and sure beats a boring big fan strapped to a chunk of metal.

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Fan Blades

NZXT HAVIK 140 - 140mm Fan

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Fan Mounted

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Fan Mounted

The HAVIK 140 features dual 140mm fans which allow this cooler to move some serious airflow without making you go deaf (up to 90.3 CFM @ 25 dBA). As you can see in the pictures both of these fans are mounted to the heatsink with some rubber mounting straps which we will talk more about in the Installation section of this review.

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Fan Mounted

The way that NZXT has mounted the fans onto the heatsink has me a little torn. On one hand using rubber mounting bands makes installing or removing the fans super easy and reduces vibrations. On the other hand using rubber mounting bands also looks a little strange (and a bit cheap) and if I had a big window in the side of my case I’d probably not be too happy to have to look at them all the time.

Obviously for most people a CPU cooler’s looks doesn’t really matter much since it’s on the inside of your system where no one looks, but if you’re looking for a cooler to compliment your fancy case with a big window on the side you’ll probably not be too keen on these rubber bands holding your fans on. The rest of the cooler looks really nice and it's a bit of a shame that they couldn't have gone with a mounting system that was a little less obvious.

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Fan Mounting Rubber Bands

NZXT HAVIK 140 - Accessories

Included with the HAVIK 140 is everything you'll need to get this cooler mounted on pretty much any AMD or Intel CPU produced in the last 5 years. Intel's 775, 1156, 1155, and 1366 platforms are supported while AMD's AM2, AM2+ and AM3 is supported.

Nothing too out of the ordinary is included; you'll get all your mounting hardware for the various CPUs that are supported, enough thermal paste to get you going, the heatsink, 2 fans, instructions, and an adapter to plug the two fans into one fan header on your motherboard.